Mandi:
Thank you for sharing with us. I'm 
polkaing down the stree w/ you Lady 
Smallhorne.
herb

On 1/25/2012 7:57 AM, Mandi 
Smallhorne wrote:
>
> Can I share this with you?
>
> I may have mentioned that eight 
> years ago I met and befriended an 
> Aids orphan in one of our shanty 
> towns. Mbali is very bright, and 
> battled her way through a very 
> poor and dysfunctional school to 
> qualify for university. She wanted 
> to do a BSc, but could not get in 
> due to space constraints. She 
> therefore did a diploma course in 
> biotechnology at the University of 
> Johannesburg last year – and did 
> very well, getting three 
> distinctions, one in chemistry.
>
> We applied to transfer her to BSc 
> this year, and the admin botched 
> things – they told her she was 
> accepted subject to space being 
> available, then told her she’d 
> been rejected. I got into a rage 
> and wrote an impassioned – but I 
> hope reasoned – email to the dean, 
> pointing out that this way, South 
> Africa was likely to lose a 
> scientist and gain a technician. 
> She has proved that she is 
> dedicated and hardworking, and 
> will not drop out mid-year, as so 
> many of our deeply unprepared 
> first-years do. I said she should 
> be accepted based solely on her 
> 2011 results, but added that I 
> found it really sad that they were 
> turning down a girl who, on one 
> occasion, turned to me with a 
> glowing face and said, “I really 
> LOVE science!” Someone who has the 
> potential to go way beyond BSc, to 
> really contribute to science 
> nationally and globally. (Plus, I 
> reminded them, she has a sponsor 
> who is paying her fees, and I am 
> sure I can fundraise a little to 
> cover books – so many of our 
> first-years don’t have enough for 
> their fees, and can’t qualify for 
> a bank loan, the Catch-22 being 
> banks won’t loan to first-years 
> who they well know could drop out.)
>
> And guess what? I got a phone call 
> from the faculty. They have 
> decided to accept Mbali. She’s on 
> her way! A kid born in a 
> corrugated iron shack will become 
> a scientist, will, I am sure, one 
> day be Dr Nkabinde. Tears, 
> laughter, and a desire to rush out 
> and polka down the street…. OMG, I 
> am so glad!
>
> Mandi
>
>
>
> __________ Information from ESET 
> NOD32 Antivirus, version of virus 
> signature database 6825 (20120125) 
> __________
>
> The message was checked by ESET 
> NOD32 Antivirus.
>
> http://www.eset.com